Oma is 98 years old. She was very happy to see us and especially to see me! We visited Vlissingen with Granny and auntie Helga. They showed us many places of their childhood : First is the house where Granny lived before she got married 5 Herman Heijermanslaan street. Going on with the visit, here, Grandma and Helga show us their old school.
I was 21 years old, and just one week away from writing my final exams at the Merchant Navy Officers Training College in Vlissingen, the Netherlands. Vlissingen is a small community. Most students attended the college on an indenture contract for one of the big shipping companies. I had signed a three-year contract with Royal Interocean Lines, all of it to be spent in the Far East without ever stopping in the Netherlands. The RIL paid for my tuition, books, room and board, uniforms and a small allowance; in addition, it facilitated my dream of becoming an engineering officer on a ship and travelling around the world.
Shortly before final exams, six of my classmates and I decided to rent a Volkswagen bus and go partying across the border in Belgium. I was the only guy without a girl for a date.
One of my friends introduced me to this young woman I had seen before — someone I had never dared to approach. Lo and behold, her parents and siblings decided to go to the movies and leave us alone. I fell head over heels in love with Mieke. We had a wonderful time in Knokke, but when we got home, Mieke made it clear that having fun was one thing, but waiting for me for three years was out of the question.
However, I never gave up hope. For one thing, I had managed to get into the good graces of her mother. Over the ensuing three years, I travelled all over the Southern Hemisphere on a variety of ships.
